<img decoding="async" alt="Pine Lakes Country Club" src="/media/images/Go_Low_600x300.png" style="width: 600px;height: 300px" />
MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. | The worst-kept secret about me is that I’m not a top-notch golfer. 
Appearances &#8211; and by that, I mean, my work writing about courses around the Southeast and mostly the Myrtle Beach area &#8211; would point to my game being much better than it is. Still, luckily for me, you don’t have to be a borderline pro to break it down.
It’s why I usually wait at least a few holes to tell newly paired playing partners about my role with MyrtleBeachGolfTrips.com and MBN.com. Avoiding those preconceived notions are my version of making a good first impression (or avoiding a bad one).
On a good day, I’m like most of you; a bogey golfer who sneaks in a few pars each round while usually trying to avoid disaster. It made sense, then, that my bosses asked me to put together a list of some of the Grand Strand courses where I’ve found I can still max out my game and shave off a few more strokes than normal.
Would a professional golfer think these courses are tough? No.
But pros don’t read my stuff looking for advice. I figure I’ll pass it on to more common folks just like me.
CALEDONIA GOLF &amp; FISH CLUB 
The first time I ever set foot on one of the Grand Strand’s most distinguished courses, I was concentrating so much on the pure awesomeness of it all that I genuinely forgot about my own skills and just did my thing. The result? An 86 on the par-70 Mike Strantz layout despite temps in the 40s and enough reason to keep reaching for my camera throughout. I realized something that day, and rolled it into future rounds there: Taking in all that <a href="https://www.mbn.com/courses/caledonia-golf-and-fish-club">Caledonia</a> has to offer is to a player’s advantage, as it forces you to slow down and analyze shot after shot after shot.
FOUNDERS CLUB OF PAWLEYS ISLAND 
To a degree, I’ve written about the framing that the immense amount of sand at <a href="https://www.mbn.com/courses/founders-club">Founders Club</a> gives anyone who plays there. Yes, eventually you’re going to need to be able to hit out of a massive waste area, and, no, it’s not always going to be pretty. But like courses up and down the East Coast that play along the Atlantic Ocean, the trick here is to tune out the proverbial noise and just stay in the green stuff. I’ve been able to do that here more often than not, beginning a decade ago when I wrote my very first local course review.
PINE LAKES COUNTRY CLUB 
A track that allows you to get into a rhythm will be rewarded with repeat play, and it’s not rocket science that tells us that rhythm will frequently lead to a better-looking scorecard. That’s exactly what I’ve found when I’ve played <a href="https://www.mbn.com/courses/pine-lakes-country-club">Pine Lakes</a>. (pictured above) With only two true water carries (Nos. 11 and 14) and just a small handful of doglegs, I can get into that zone off the tee. There are six consecutive holes between Par 3s on the front and four straight Par 4s between the short holes on the back. Oh, and did we mention that the by-hole handicaps are evenly spread out? The evens are on the front, and the odds are on the back.
MYRTLE BEACH NATIONAL, WEST COURSE<img decoding="async" alt="West Course at Myrtle Beach National" src="/media/images/WEST3.jpg" style="width: 300px;height: 150px;float: right" /> 
Calling the <a href="https://www.mbn.com/courses/myrtle-beach-national-west-course">West Course at Myrtle Beach National</a>  (pictured right) a duffer’s dream isn’t appropriate. Better yet, the Arnold Palmer layout and one-third of the Myrtle Beach National property is the fairest option start to finish of just about any grouping of area tracks it may find itself a part of. The reason is clear. Relatively wide landing zones feed directly into forgiving roughs and tree lines that still offer good looks more often than not. That means &#8211; if you’re anything like me and aren’t perfect off the tee &#8211; the occasional goof isn’t going to make a bogey automatically turn into a snow man.
WORLD TOUR GOLF LINKS 
Mel Graham’s years-long pet project took shape when <a href="https://www.mbn.com/courses/world-tour-golf-links">World Tour Golf Links</a> opened for business and made waves as arguably the best replica course in all of North America. Just the same, trying to recreate the likes of Augusta National, St. Andrews, Pinehurst and more also meant that it was going to need to be slightly more playable. The edges were smoothed off most of the holes here, leaving the look and feel but still making it more friendly to schmucks like me who have no business in a major setting. That small variable is something I take advantage of, and I believe you could, too.
Ian Guerin is a DJ and freelance writer based in Myrtle Beach. You can follow him on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/iguerin?lang=en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">@iguerin</a> and Facebook <a href="https://www.facebook.com/IanGuerinWriter/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">facebook.com/IanGuerinWriter/</a>

Golf Writer Ian Guerin’s Top Five Myrtle Beach Courses To Go Low

Courses in this Article

World Tour Golf Links

West Course at Myrtle Beach National

Pine Lakes Country Club

Founders Club

Caledonia Golf and Fish Club

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